USA upset fourth seeds France to progress to the semi-finals of the World Junior Team Squash Championship ©WSF

United States upset fourth seeds France in the quarter-finals of the World Squash Federation (WF) Men's World Junior Team Championship to progress to the last four.

That means the Americans have secured a top four finish for the first time in 17 appearances since 1984.

Victor Crouin put France into the lead at Enjoy Squash in the Polish city of Bielsko-Biała after beating Spencer Lovejoy in five games, 11-8, 9-11, 11-6, 11-13, 11-3.

The tie looked safely in the European team's hands when number one Benjamin Aubert opened up a two-game lead against his US equivalent Andrew Douglas.

The 18-year-old New Yorker, however, produced a stunning comeback to cut the deficit before storming through to a 3-11, 8-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-3 victory in 55 minutes to level the match.

Seventeen-year-old American Samuel Scherl then sealed the victory, clinching his match against Sébastien Bonmalais 11-5, 11-6, 13-15, 11-6 in 70 minutes to the delight of his team-mates.

"Our match against Jordan last night was a tough one and we finished quite late," said US head coach Adam Hamill.

"We did a lot of recovery and came into the quarter-finals believing we had a real chance.

"Andrew has had an unbelievable week, first taking world junior champion Eain Yow to five games, then another five games against the Jordan number one.

England, the fifth seeds, defeated fourth seeds India 3-0 to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2012 ©WSF
England, the fifth seeds, defeated fourth seeds India 3-0 to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2012 ©WSF

"He had a slow start physically against the French number one - however, as the match progressed, Andrew found more accuracy to slowly break down the Frenchman.

"This is a historic moment for the US junior men's team, with a guaranteed highest finish. 

"We're incredibly grateful for the support we have received from US Squash to make this event possible for us all." 

USA, who finished in ninth place two years ago, now face Pakistan for a place in the final. 

The second seeds beat fellow former champions Australia in the final tie of the day and are now one win away from an eighth successive appearance in the final.

There was a further surprise in the event when England, the fifth seeds, defeated fourth seeds India 3-0 to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2012.

After Kyle Finch put the 2000 champions ahead, top seed Charlie Lee clinched England's victory with an 11-8, 11-5, 11-8 victory over Indian number one Velavan Senthilkumar.